by Gary Mintchell | Sep 3, 2024 | Leadership, News
For my money, Jack Nehlig has been one of the premier leaders in the control and instrumentation market in the US. He has led Phoenix Contact US through the difficult market transitions of the past 15-20 years. I’ve enjoyed his Tweets (remember those) and LinkedIn posts that are always positive and supportive. He is retiring at the end of the year. And thus a leadership transition.
Phoenix Contact USA announced a new management structure and leadership team, effective September 1, 2024. This board-based leadership change supports the successful maturation of the U.S. company as a Group Center of Competence and the overall Business Area (BA) structure that Phoenix Contact first implemented in 2016. It also provides a seamless transition in preparation for the retirement of Jack Nehlig, President of Phoenix Contact USA, who is retiring on December 31, 2024, after 23 years with the company.
- Heath Scoggin has been promoted to President of the BA Device Connectors and will lead Phoenix Contact Development and Manufacturing legal entity, Process Management, and Quality.
- Kevin Zak has been promoted to President of the BA Industrial Components and Electronics and will lead the Phoenix Contact U.S. Sales Subsidiary legal entity, Logistics, Government Relations, and ESG.
- Davis Mathews has been promoted to President of the BA Industry Management and Automation and will lead the Phoenix Contact Holdings legal entity, Human Relations, Digitalization, IT, Purchasing, and Facilities.
- In addition, Kyle Bordner was promoted to Vice President of Finance and Risk Management, replacing David Russo, who retired in May.
Scoggin, Zak, Mathews, and Bordner have been named members of both the Phoenix Contact USA Executive Board and the Management Board. The Phoenix Contact Management Board will also include Marian Roldan, Senior Vice President of Human Relations, and Doug Ferguson, Senior Vice President of Americas Operations Services.
by Gary Mintchell | Aug 23, 2024 | Commentary, News
After many years of Automation Fair expos from Rockwell Automation, the 2024 edition from November 18-21 in Anaheim boasts a new look and feel. Registration is now open for what Rockwell Automation calls, “a vibrant convergence of innovation, learning, and networking opportunities for industrial operations and technology leaders worldwide.”
The Rockwell publicity team pulled out the old Thesaurus. The four-day agenda is meticulously curated with exclusive programming found nowhere else, featuring tailored sessions, tracks, tours, and experiences designed to inspire and empower attendees. From hands-on learning to executive forums, attendees will gain insights into overcoming production challenges, enhancing resilience, agility, and sustainability, and making a significant impact in their industries.
One reason that Automation Fair always had very high attendance was that distributors brought their best customers and prospects (I did that a few times). Customer attendance was free of charge. This year’s event is much more like the traditional customer conference of its competitors. That means more content and also a fee to attend. Check out the sessions. Good content and networking makes it all worthwhile.
Event Highlights:
- Daily Keynotes: A fan favorite! Prepare to be inspired by industry experts and thought leaders driving meaningful change. Hosted Monday-Wednesday and open to all attendees.
- Expo: Explore more than 120 interactive exhibits across a half-million square feet of the Expo floor, Discovery Theaters showcase new product launches, and Expo tours are available to maximize time on the Expo floor.
- Education: 450+ hours of advanced training, 400+ domain expert presenters and 275+ educational sessions. Experience hands-on labs for interactive training and participate in product and technology sessions focusing on cutting-edge use cases and demonstrations.
- Off-site Tours: Back by popular demand, off-site tours are a unique opportunity to get close to the action at local cutting-edge industrial facilities.
by Gary Mintchell | Aug 21, 2024 | Automation, News, Security
Cybersecurity companies release periodic reports trying to alert people to recent threats and new awareness. This report, Industrial Ransomware Analysis: Q2 2024, comes from Dragos, written on his blog by Abdulrahman H. Alamri.
The report shows a resurgence in ransomware group activity, almost doubling the number of attacks in Q2 (312 incidents) compared to Q1(169 incidents) after law enforcement crackdowns earlier this year. Major groups like ALPHV (BlackCat) and LockBit 3.0 have quickly adapted by intensifying attacks and disrupting industrial operations.
The industrial sector remains a primary target due to the nature of its operations and the potentially high impact of disruptions. Notable incidents include Frontier Communications, Clevo, Allied Telesis, Inc., and the Gijón Bio-Energy Plant. Dragos also notes the rebranding of Royal ransomware to BlackSuit and Knight ransomware to RansomHub, both of which have adopted advanced encryption and lateral movement techniques.
Key highlights from the report include:
- The manufacturing sector was the most affected, with 210 observed incidents, accounting for approximately 67 percent of all ransomware incidents
- Compared to the same time frame in 2023, with 467 incidents in Q1/Q2 2023, there has been a slight increase
- Lockbit group was behind most attacks against industrial organizations, with approximately 21 percent (or 66 incidents) of observed ransomware events
- Out of 86 known ransomware groups targeting industrial organizations, 29 were active in Q2 2024, an increase from 22 active groups in Q1 2024
- Government-affiliated groups are adapting ransomware tactics, and hacktivists are increasingly using and developing their own ransomware tools, illustrating a convergence of ideological and financial motivations
Alamri concludes his report with this:
In the second quarter of 2024, ransomware groups demonstrated a significant capacity for adaptation, with some groups rebranding and others emerging with new tactics and techniques. This suggests that these groups will continue to refine their operations, leveraging sophisticated methods such as zero-day vulnerabilities to enhance their attacks.
As we move forward, Dragos assesses with moderate confidence that the ransomware threat landscape will continue to evolve, characterized by the introduction of new ransomware variants and increasing coordinated campaigns targeting industrial sectors. Despite significant law enforcement actions, the observed resilience and adaptability of ransomware groups indicate a likely continuation of this trend.
While Dragos did not identify any ransomware attacks directly targeting ICS/OT processes, the interconnected nature of IT and OT environments means that disruptions to IT systems can have significant downstream effects on OT operations. This interdependency suggests that ransomware groups may increasingly target OT networks to amplify the impact of their attacks, potentially compromising the safety and operational integrity of industrial organizations.
by Gary Mintchell | Aug 20, 2024 | Commentary, News
Here’s a good reason to carefully read what data purveyors and analysts give you. This is from Martin of Newsworthy Data. He’s a data scientist.
First off, this is negative in tone, which is thought to be newsworthy (unstated, but true).
2024 Tech Layoffs
He uses emotionally laden words…revealing the technology firms that have slashed the most jobs in 2024 so far.
And…record-breaking 263 thousand job losses last year, the global technology sector continues to face significant workforce reductions in 2024 and a total of 203,946 positions have been eliminated across more than 165 tech companies worldwide so far this year.
U.S.-based tech companies have been leading the global tech layoffs in 2024 so far, accounting for an astounding 115,257 job cuts, or 56.51% of the worldwide total.
OK, just where are the most tech jobs? Half seems within some sort of rational order.
Within the U.S., tech firms based in California and Texas have led in job cuts, impacting 48,055 and 35,066 employees, respectively, and accounting for over 70% of the nation’s total reductions.
In which states are tech firms concentrated? Oh, California and Texas. Duh.
Conversely, companies in Montana and Virginia have reported the fewest tech job cuts this year, with a combined total of just 90 positions slashed.
Oh, yes, that high tech bastion of Montana.
When you get statistics thrown at you especially in mass media (or social media), check carefully. The only real news here is that many tech companies were bloated and were forced to reduce workforce. He doesn’t address who was hiring to offset some or all of this.
by Gary Mintchell | Aug 19, 2024 | News, Organizations, Process Control, Sensors
Partnerships continue to form core strategy in this maturing industrial marketplace. This partnership allows each entity to focus resources on their core businesses forming a new entity with another focus.
Perhaps more technology companies should consider splitting out pieces of the business that could be focused and innovative. Then the core business could also be more focused and innovative. We’ve seen Emerson realign its portfolio over the past few years, for example.
German sensor company SICK and the Swiss measurement and automation technology specialist Endress+Hauser have agreed on a strategic partnership. Endress+Hauser will take over worldwide sales and service of SICK’s process analyzers and gas flowmeters, with a joint venture to be established for their production and further development. The aim of the partnership is to provide customers with even better support in increasing their efficiency and sustainability.
SICK and Endress+Hauser signed a joint memorandum of understanding for a strategic partnership in October 2023. Since then, the project has been examined and plans for implementing the cooperation have been drawn up. Following approval by the respective supervisory bodies, representatives of both companies have now signed a corresponding agreement. The closing of the transaction is planned for the turn of the year 2024/2025 and is subject to approval by antitrust authorities.
As a key aspect of the strategic partnership, Endress+Hauser will take over sales and service for process analysis and gas flow measurement technology completely. Around 800 specialized sales and service employees in 42 countries will transfer from SICK to Endress+Hauser. Customers will benefit by receiving more products from a single source. The global Endress+Hauser sales network will enable additional customers to be acquired, more industries to be reached and new applications to be developed.
From 2025, the production and further development of process analyzers and gas flowmeters will be the responsibility of a joint venture in which each partner will hold a 50 percent stake. It will employ about 730 people at several locations in Germany. The joint venture will work closely with Endress+Hauser’s competence centers to drive product innovations forward efficiently.
SICK is one of the world’s leading solution providers for sensor-based applications in the industrial sector. The core business of factory and logistics automation, which accounts for more than 80 percent of sales, will not be affected by the partnership.
by Gary Mintchell | Aug 16, 2024 | Commentary, News, Podcast
Podcast Audio and Video Posted
Many times in my career I have hired into a company during the initial surge of a market. Good jobs. Excitement. Opportunity to work on new things. Then the market matured or collapsed usually due to external forces such as technology changes or consumer behavior.
I hit recreation vehicles at a high point followed by high inflation and gasoline price surges. Then a consumer product company where Consumer Reports published a poorly researched article—but the external market also changed. Then PC peripherals. The latest was automation where a few of us started a magazine to cover it. The market was good for about 10 years. Then we went into brief cycles of IIoT, edge, networks, collaborative robots, IT companies looking at the manufacturing market.
This podcast began life in 2007 as Automation Minutes. I morphed it into Gary on Manufacturing to make it more general. That was more than 10 years ago. Must be time for another change.
That all is quite mature now.
Where do you think the offsetting new technologies or customer behavior will lead now? Or, is the market just going to begin to either consolidate further or split? What do you think?
